Chapter 143: Chapter 133: Summer Vacation Is Here

In the blink of an eye, the mid-term exams were over, and school let out for summer vacation.

Summer vacation was no easy time for children in the countryside. They all had to help with chores around the house. Those over twelve who were taller and stronger joined the production team as half-laborers to earn work points. The younger ones fed the pigs and chickens, cooked meals, chopped firewood, and cut grass. Every day was busy, but there was also time to play. For instance, when they went to the mountains to chop firewood or cut grass, they would go in groups of three or five. After finishing their work, they could roam the mountainsides picking wild fruit. After coming down the mountain, they would run to the fields to dig up sweet potatoes and bake them in makeshift kilns. It was fun and filled their stomachs, a joy no less than that of city kids going to an amusement park.

Ever since Grandma’s eyes had healed, Xiao Man wasn’t even allowed to feed the two little black pigs anymore. Grandma said there wasn’t even enough housework to keep herself busy, so she didn’t want Xiao Man to lift a finger. Firewood and grass were hauled back from the mountains by Grandpa and Mo Chengfu. At most, Xiao Man helped cook a few dishes and tend to the garden each day. The rest of her time was spent studying her medical books, which made her look like an idler.

Second Granny Qiu couldn’t stand the sight of it. She told Grandma, "You’re not doting on her, you’re spoiling her. When she marries into another family in the future, it’ll be one thing if she’s not hardworking, but she won’t even be deft at her chores. Her in-laws will despise her."

Grandma just smiled and said, "My Xiao Man will be someone’s wife one day, not their workhorse. Whoever marries her has to cherish her like his own daughter. If anyone is looking for a wife just to do chores and support the family, they’d better not come knocking on my door."

Second Granny Qiu was left speechless, muttering only that she was getting senile in her old age.

Xiao Man simply smiled and paid no mind to the grannies’ chitchat.

Once the vacation started, Teacher Yu took her child back to the county seat to reunite with her in-laws and husband. She had chosen to learn the Sun-style Tai Chi Thirty-Six Forms, and having basically mastered the movements and Qi Circulation methods, she just needed to go home and practice diligently on her own.

Lin Liuping usually came to Xiao Man’s house in the afternoon and evening. In the mornings, she had to finish her chores at home before she could leave for the cooperative store. Otherwise, her stepmother would shout in her booming voice for the whole village to hear, calling her incorrigibly lazy and disobedient. Girls in the countryside feared such rumors the most, as they concerned one’s reputation and would lower their value when it came time for marriage negotiations.

Her relationship with Huang Hongliang was developing steadily. They exchanged one letter and one phone call every week and met twice a month on average. He would bring her all sorts of snacks from the county seat, the most fashionable new skirts and blouses, or bolts of high-quality fabric... Lin Liuping was very satisfied with Huang Hongliang and had agreed to his request. After the "double rush" of the busy farming season, she would bring him home to meet her parents and elders.

’Then they’ll put on that watch and finalize the engagement, right?’ Xiao Man thought to herself.

Lu Meiye also came to see Lin Liuping often. Before, she only came occasionally on Sundays, but now she visited almost every day. After all, her home was in the next village, less than half an hour away by bicycle. Lin Liuping, for her part, welcomed her. Lu Meiye was a relative from her stepmother’s side of the family, and when relatives visited, her stepmother would be happy. She wouldn’t nag Lin Liuping and would even cook some nice dishes. Her younger siblings adored this older cousin, who always brought them candy. Their own sister worked at the cooperative store selling candy, but she was stingy as could be—asking her for a single piece was like asking for her life.

This was especially true for Lin Liuping’s thirteen-year-old younger sister, Lin Meilian. After Lu Meiye gave her spending money a few times, she began to worship and adore Lu Meiye as if she were her real sister, while treating Lin Liuping with scowls and glares, as if she were an enemy.

Lin Liuping didn’t care much about this. There was no warmth in this home for her. She just wanted to find a good man, get married, and leave, hopefully without creating too much resentment with her family.

One evening, Lin Liuping was finishing her "homework" under the big pear tree when Grandpa and Mo Chengfu returned from the mountains where they had been gathering medicinal herbs. The two of them had caught a wild rabbit. Grandma asked Lin Liuping to stay for dinner, and since she had long stopped considering herself a guest in their yard, she happily agreed. Grandma had already steamed the rice, washed the vegetables, and even boiled a large pot of water. With nothing else to do, Lin Liuping and Xiao Man grabbed small stools and sat by the edge of the sunning platform, planning to watch Mo Chengfu skin the rabbit.

But Mo Chengfu unexpectedly picked up the rabbit and moved to another corner, saying, "If girls watch such a bloody scene, they’ll become even more violent."

Lin Liuping burst out laughing, while Xiao Man was speechless.

’Am I violent? I only stuck him with a needle a few times. It just made him so itchy that he hopped all over the yard, wanting to cry but unable to stop laughing... That was because he was too self-righteous and thought he was so clever.’

The Mo Chengfu of today was a completely different person. He was no longer the listless, degenerate figure he had once been, when people had taken him for a lunatic. Now, he was full of spirit. He persisted with treatment and exercises for his "crippled hand," which was in recovery. He walked with his back straight, and all in all, he could even be considered a fairly handsome guy. He followed Grandpa to gather medicinal herbs, and after seeing Xiao Man practice acupuncture on her small dolls, he pestered her to teach him. So, Xiao Man taught him a few things and had Zheng Shaolian buy him some traditional Chinese medicine books from a bookstore in Wancheng. She told him that if he wanted to study more deeply, he could attend the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine in the future. For now, he was focusing on learning acupuncture. This was beneficial for him, as he could treat his own wrist and also help those around him with common ailments.

Mo Chengfu had graduated from junior high with good grades, but he couldn’t go on to high school because his family couldn’t afford it and his younger siblings also needed to attend school. He wasn’t stupid, but he had a tendency to get bogged down in trivialities, asking questions that left you not knowing whether to laugh or cry, and he liked to do the exact opposite of what he was told. Medicine, especially traditional Chinese medicine, demands rigor and meticulousness, not bold innovation. When he suggested that two different needling techniques were not that different and should have the same effect, proposing they could be used interchangeably, Xiao Man used him as an experiment. She stuck him with needles until tears streamed down his face while he laughed hysterically, caught in an agonizing state between wanting to live and die. After that, he never dared to speak so carelessly again, and he certainly didn’t dare to needle anyone haphazardly—not only did Xiao Man make him experiment on himself, but she would also occasionally stick him a few times. That feeling... In any case, Mo Chengfu was now terrified of Xiao Man.

Forbidden from watching the rabbit being killed, Xiao Man and Lin Liuping moved over to the rose trellis to talk.

"Sister Liu Ping, it’s Saturday. How come I don’t see Lu Meiye here looking for you?"

"She came by last night. She said she has things to do today and tomorrow, so she won’t be coming."

"Oh, the last time she came to our house with you, she was wearing a white blouse with a black pleated skirt. Those were your clothes, right? I remember you have a set like that. The white blouse has a ruffled trim on the chest. The one Huang Hongliang gave you."

"Listen to you. Just because the clothes are the same, they have to be mine? The county supply co-op sells that outfit. If Huang Hongliang can buy it, why can’t Meiye?"

"Why would she buy the exact same thing?"

"She saw how nice it looked on me and bought one to match."

Xiao Man was speechless again. It seemed this was just how it was in this era. People didn’t get angry about wearing the same outfit as someone else; they’d actually be happy about it. ’Great minds think alike, I suppose!’

She then asked, "Tomorrow’s Sunday. Will Huang Hongliang be coming?"

A sweet smile spread across Lin Liuping’s face. "How could he come every Sunday? He just called me before the production brigade office closed. He said he’ll come see me in a few days."

Just as the food was ready and everyone was gathering around the table to eat, there was a knock on the courtyard gate. Grandpa, thinking it was Secretary Mo, hurried to open it himself. But to his surprise, the person who came in was Teacher Yu’s father, Vice Factory Director Yu.

Grandpa pulled Director Yu over to eat with them and have a couple of drinks. They had corn liquor and wild grape wine at home, and he could drink whichever he pleased. Director Yu enjoyed a good drink. He often came to pick up or drop off his daughter, so he had become quite familiar with Grandpa. Without any ceremony, he pushed his large "28" bicycle inside. He was even more delighted when he saw there was rabbit meat.

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